After long being focused on bar-style devices, we are seeing more and more sliders from the Finish manufacturer of late, and the 6110 is one of the finest examples of the form factor I have seen from Nokia. Everything about the Nokia 6110 feels solid and durable, though the gloss black plastic used has a very unfortunate cheap feel to it. Offsetting this is a lovely brushed aluminum finished area on the front, silver sides, and a chrome camera cover. I am also very happy to see the use of plastic doors over the memory card slot and miniUSB connector. The front of the device holds the two softkeys, call, and end keys, which surround a large 5-way d-pad. Directly underneath this the clear key, menu key, and a shortcut button to the navigation application can be found. All these keys are stylishly flush mounted to the face of the device, though they are still surprisingly comfortable and easy to find and use. Also surprising is the use of the end call button as the power key when we are used to seeing Nokia handsets with a dedicated power button.
Opening the slider reveals a keypad not completely dissimilar to the one used on the Nokia N95, though it is a little smaller. While the keys are adequately spaced for easy usage, tactile feedback is atrocious. The keys are far too firm to be used comfortably for anything more than quickly dialing phone numbers, meaning that frequent text message users may have to look elsewhere. The top row of the keypad is also far too close to the upper part of the slide, and the large step up makes them very hard to press for all but those with the smallest of fingers.
Looking to the right side of the Nokia 6110, you will find the volume up and down buttons and a camera shutter key, with the miniUSB connector, a personal shortcut button, and the microSD slot housed on the left. All the buttons on the device continue the flush design seen on the d-pad, and while a very small travel distance and light detailing may hinder the ability to find the keys blindly, it ensures that when used with the bundled car mount none of the keys are pressed inadvertently. The battery cover release is found on the bottom of the device, and in a move that leaves me completely puzzled, the charging port and 2.5mm headset connector appear on the top. While this may make sense for the 2.5mm jack, this positioning of the charging port makes both desktop charging and charging off a car's cigarette lighter while held in the car mount extremely inconvenient. On the back of the device, a chrome lens cover protects the 2.0MP camera. The large speaker is found directly below.
While it is much smaller than the N95's, the Nokia 6110 Navigator's screen carries the same QVGA resolution, and is one of the best I have seen on a Nokia device. As the handset will more than likely be used for navigation while attached to the windscreen of a car, usability in direct sunlight is of paramount importance. This, thankfully, is one of the 6110's plus points. Even in sunlight, the screen holds good contrast levels, and colors continue to appear quite rich. While a bigger screen would obviously be a boon for a device like this, I found it more than adequate in testing. Usage out of sunlight is great as well, with on-screen text and graphics being very crisp and clear. Small compass point detailing around the screen continues the navigator theme.